Saving Her
by CeliaEquus
Summary: When Professor Snape saved Hermione from Krum, could he finally tell her his feelings? My first one-shot.


"Saving Her"

Stalking along the corridors, looking forward to taking points from unsuspecting students, Severus Snape heard heels clicking along, and choking sobs. Rolling his eyes at the fickleness of teenage girls and their lovers' tiffs, he started forward, but halted when he heard her speak.

"Oh, hello, Viktor." So it was the Granger girl. Who would have thought she'd go to another ball with Krum? It was one year since Voldemort had been defeated, and now they had an annual ball to celebrate it. This was the first of many, and Hermione had invited Krum, since Ron was going with Lavender. The Gryffindor princess certainly did look stunning this evening; it had been a shame to leave the Great Hall so early under the pretence of patrolling the school, but it had been too painful to see her dancing so happily with the Quidditch player.

"Are you all right, Her-mo-ninny?"

"It's just Ron being stupid. I'm sorry I left."

"You know how you can make it up to me?"

Severus went on alert, hearing something in the boy's tone that Hermione clearly didn't.

Sniff. "How?"

"Well…"

There was movement, and he heard Hermione's startled gasp before he heard the unmistakable sound of kissing. Hurting again, Severus started to move away when he heard Hermione's feet stamping. What was going on?

He poked his head around the corner, safe in the dark, and saw that she was trying to push Krum away from her, clearly distressed. With a silent dart forward, he yanked the Bulgarian off her, pushing him away with little effort.

"So I was right to patrol the corridors," he said, danger in his voice.

"We were just kissing, Professor," Krum said, wiping a hand across his mouth. So it was _that_ kind of kiss, was it? No wonder Hermione… _Granger_… hadn't liked it.

"Mr. Krum," Severus said, "much as I enjoy watching a Gryffindor be humiliated, I do _not_ tolerate sexual assault, and Miss Granger was clearly uncomfortable with your handling of her. I trust that you were not going to force her to do anything _else_… were you?" he finished sharply, and Krum paled.

"No, sir," he said. "No, I wouldn't dream of…"

"And you will keep your hands off her until you have her consent?" he added, hoping that she'd never give that consent.

"Of course, Professor. Anything you say."

"That goes for every other female student under this roof," Severus said, deciding that he had to look like he was protecting the female population of Hogwarts in general. His protectiveness of Miss Granger would look less suspicious that way.

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Go on, then."

Krum slunk away, and Severus waited until all was quiet again before turning to Hermione, whose hair was slightly messed, her lips puffy, and her eyes red.

"Are you all right?" he asked quietly, and she nodded.

"What's going on?" a voice said, and they both spun around to see Minerva McGonagall standing at the end of the corridor, watching them. She was suddenly concerned to see that Hermione was upset, and frowned at Severus, as though _he_ were to blame. Fair assumption, really.

"Miss Granger was assaulted by Mr. Krum," Severus said. "I was just about to escort her back to Gryffindor Tower, with a stop at the infirmary in case she requires a Calming Draught or Dreamless Sleep Potion."

"I'll be fine, thank you, Professor Snape," Hermione said quietly. "But I wouldn't mind an escort."

"You poor girl," Minerva said, enveloping her student in a hug. "If you need anyone to talk to about it…"

"Professor Snape stopped anything bad from happening," Hermione said. "Th-thank you, sir," she added to the Potions teacher, who simply nodded before looking away from the emotional scene.

"You go along, then," Minerva told her. "You'll be safe with Professor Snape."

"I know. Thank you, Professor McGonagall."

"You're welcome, dear. Good night."

They walked along in silence, Hermione slower than usual, and Severus matching her strides evenly. It wasn't _exactly_ an uncomfortable silence. They just didn't know what to say. Finally…

"I'm glad you saved me, Professor," Hermione said. "Anyone else would have made more fuss. If it was Harry or Ron, or one of the Weasley twins, for example, they might have hexed him, and then they'd be in trouble."

"Nice to know that you value your friends more than your… virtue," Severus said, arching an eyebrow, and Hermione blushed.

"I didn't have any friends when I was younger," she admitted. "Only my parents. So I value them all, and help them when I can."

"Including with their studies?" he asked, and she looked at him nervously. "Oh please, Granger. Credit me with _some_ brains. Of course you help them. You just have to look at them in class to know that they can't possibly do any good in their essays without help."

"Oh," she said, looking at her feet as she trudged along. "Oh, this is ridiculous," she said suddenly, frustrated with her heels. Placing a hand on Severus' shoulder, she hopped a little on her left foot as she removed her right shoe, and then changed feet and hands to remove the other torturous heel. "_Never_ again. Sod any further balls, I refuse to ever wear heels again… oh, _sorry_, sir!" she exclaimed, realising that he was alternating between looking at her and looking at her hand, still holding onto his shoulder. She pulled her hand away quickly, as though she had touched fire.

"Don't be so skittish, Granger," Severus said, amused by her reaction. "I won't curse you for using me for support."

"You… you won't?" Hermione asked, her eyes wide.

"What do you take me for?" he said, no longer amused, hurt that she would think so badly of him.

"Well, I… I didn't ask permission," she said, still wide-eyed. "I'm sorry, Professor. Really. I didn't meant to… I just thought… well, I didn't ever think you'd use _magic_ against me, but you might still have docked a lot of points, and…"

"Quiet, girl," he said softly, berating himself mentally for making her worry. After all, she _had_ apologised to him. _Twice_. Nobody ever did that. "It's all right. Just remember; I'm not as bad as you think I am. At least, I _hope_ not. How bad do you think I am?"

"I don't think you're bad at all, _really_, sir," Hermione said, frowning. The tears were starting to gather again. "You just favour your house, that's all. And, well, you don't treat my friends very well… _or_ me, for that matter. The teeth thing…"

"Yes, I'm sorry about that," Severus muttered, indicating that they should keep walking to the tower, as they were so close. She followed him, walking faster now that she had removed her shoes. "I really didn't think; I was just… I don't know. I have a bad habit of saying the wrong things at the wrong time. But really, you shouldn't have worried about your teeth before. You're too smart to think that it would matt… And that's another thing," he said, neither of them noticing that they were into personal territory. "Why on earth would someone with your brains invited a dunderheaded Quidditch player to a ball? Surely you learnt the first time around that you have nothing in common?"

"Because the right person wouldn't ask me," she said. "Couldn't ask me."

Damn bloody Weasley, Severus thought, thinking back to when Hermione told Krum that she was crying over something that the Weasley boy had said. This had happened last time, if he remembered correctly. Why _couldn't_ Ron have asked her?

"Whoever he is," he said out loud, "he's not worth it. Not if he can't see who you really are. I couldn't help thinking what idiots everyone was being when they saw you in that outfit. You looked pretty much the same as always."

"I heard someone say 'She's beautiful'," Hermione protested mildly. "That's never happened to me before."

"Why would you look anything _but_ lovely?" Severus said, so softly that Hermione couldn't possibly have heard it.

"Anyway, he _is_ worth it," she said. "I love him." Severus growled inaudibly. "He's perfect for me."

"He is _not_ perfect for you, Granger," Severus said. "He's not on your intellectual level."

"Yes he is," Hermione said, smiling a little, but her teacher couldn't see.

"How could you _possibly_ think that Weasley, of all people, could be as smart as…"

"I meant you, sir," Hermione whispered, as they arrived at the portrait. Severus stopped what he was saying, and turned to her, looking confused. "Good night, Professor. Voca maximus," she said to the Fat Lady, who swung open, also confused by Hermione's answer. Once Hermione was inside, the lady closed the porthole.

"Well? What are you going to do about it, then?" she asked, frowning at the Potions master. "Did you… did you hear the password?"

"Ye-es," he said slowly, still considering Hermione's words.

"Well, I may have to change the password after the next person enters the room," the Fat Lady said, studying her nails carefully, before glancing at Severus significantly. "And that person had better enter soon, if they want to get in before the change takes place, blocking access _to everyone else_." Severus thought, and decided.

"V-voca maximus," he said, and the portrait swung open, the Fat Lady smiling to herself.

"What do you think the new password should be, dear?" she asked him.

"'Do not disturb'," he suggested, and smirked as he climbed into the common room, the painting swinging shut behind him, its subject chuckling to herself.

There are advantages to being a teacher, he thought, as he ascended the stairs to the girls' dormitories, where he could hear sobbing from one of the rooms. Being able to climb the stairs, being able to change the passwords for portraits…

"Hermione?" he asked gently, easing open the door of the fourth years' room. She sat up quickly and turned around, her makeup smudged and her hair increasingly wild.

"P-professor?" she said, trembling.

"You silly girl," he reprimanded, moving forward to the bed. "It's winter; you must be freezing. Here." Whereupon he took off his coat and wrapped it around her.

"I'm s-sorry, sir," she whispered, still looking at his face as he sat down beside her.

"For what? For neglecting to tell me that you wanted me to ask you to the Yule Ball, or for wanting the invitation in the first place?" he asked.

"For… for…" Hermione blinked. "I don't know."

"Then don't be sorry," he said, and he leaned down and gave her a proper kiss, not like the one that Krum had the audacity to force upon her. He pulled away before she could gather her wits and respond. "Good night, Miss Granger."

He stood quickly, and made for the door. Hermione was fast, he gave her credit for that, as she grabbed a hold of his arm and turned him around.

"Don't leave, sir," she said, looking at him, her eyes imploring. "Please don't leave me alone."

"Your dorm mates will be returning soon," he said, neglecting to mention that the portrait's password had changed, and that they wouldn't be disturbed for quite some time.

"Let them return," Hermione said, raising her head defiantly. "They'll be ages, anyway. They're probably all off snogging somewhere as well."

"That was _not_ a snog," Severus said, gazing intensely into Hermione's eyes.

"I know," she said, so quietly that he could barely hear. "Professor? Do you _really_ think that I look… that I looked _lovely_ tonight?"

She'd heard him. He realised that immediately.

"Of course you do," he said. "You've always been lovely. You just wore a dress, and those _ridiculous_ shoes."

"Do you prefer this?" she asked, afraid.

"No," he said, shaking his head. "No. I prefer how you usually look. You look more like you when you're dressed in your ordinary clothes, and particularly with that book bag which probably weighs far too much."

"I…" Hermione began, but she couldn't finish. She was too frightened.

"You what?" Severus said, prompting her to continue. He could see what she wanted to say by using Legillimancy, but he needed her to say it for it to be true.

"I love you, sir," she said, and he swooped her into his arms, holding her tightly.

"I love you, too, Hermione," he whispered back, and she sighed in happiness.

"Thank Merlin for that," she said, and they kissed again, both grateful that he had been the one to save her, and they took full advantage of the time alone.

"What do you mean you just decided to change the password?" Professor Dumbledore asked, frowning.

"That poor girl needs to be left where she is; crying her heart out, she was," the Fat Lady replied, glaring back at him. "She was upset. Anyway, it's past midnight now, and it seemed time for a change in password. With all the extra people around, tighter security is wise. Now go away, and let me go back to sleep."

"But we need to go to bed," Ron whined. Harry had told him to apologise to Hermione, and he wanted to get it over with. "We're _tired_."

"Then sleep in the hallway, and I'll let you in… eventually," she said. "Really! I've never been so insulted in all my life…"

With that, she left the portrait, and it would take quite awhile to find her, even with all of the Gryffindors searching. By then, Hermione and Severus were alone in their separate beds, she in the dorms, he in the dungeons. They slept soundly, having experienced the best night of their lives so far. The years to come could only get better.

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My first one-shot. What doest thou think? For that matter, what is the plural for 'thou'? Does anyone know? Sigh. Read & Review, if you please.

**Okay, this has been edited because of reader complaints. It is now, clearly, off-canon re. Voldemort's defeat, Severus being alive, etc. And thank you to those of you who reminded me that 'you' is the plural form of 'thou'. I should have known--we did Shakespeare this year, after all--but I had completely forgotten. Glen Thomas, if you're reading this, do forgive me.**

**Disclaimer: I've done this for free; I'm making no money from it, nor do I own anyone. I don't even own my **_**own**_** characters, because I'm not published yet. So yes. All for free. Enjoy!**


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